Concrete spreader



Mal-ch23, 1948. FABER 2,438,159 I CONCRETE SPREADER Filed Sept. 28, 1944 4 Shee ts-Sheet 1 170/212 1 Faker J 'INVE'NTOR ATTORNEY 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 J; P. FA BER I 'CONCRETE SPREADER 1 Filed Sept. 28 1944 Marc?! 3, I948.

Mar 'ch 23, 1948. J.'P. FABER 2,438,159

I CONCRETE SPREADER Filed Sept. 28, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR BY WW ATTORNEY 'March 23,1948. .1. P. FABE R CONCRETE SPREADER Filed Sept. 28, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 I I fi w 6 o v 9) til 717 F 51757" 1 INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 23, 1948 UNITE a PKTE' ApplicatiomSeptbmbmZS, iamisexialmn'rssmmai This. invention relates to apparatusfifon scream ing. concrete which has; been. deposited up'on'i a" roadway or the like, as fromthe usual-concretel mixin apparatus, to supplant the difiicult' and} costly manual work involved? in conventional? methods of: distributing, spreading and. leveling; the concrete.

Conventional types of. concrete. paving. mat chinesor mixers emplbyi a boom ofconsideitabli length which is. supported by cables; from. the: frame, of the, machine. in which .the mixing? di umi is, mounted; This booms provi'd's. a" t'rackon which the di'stributin-gjbucket"runs tbrandi from? the. mixer to, receive and"convey. toi'pointsdistant from the mixer, themixedf concrete andi'dumn it. at convenient points, after whiclitliegconcretei; is spread; and formed" into a pavementlby work;

men.

The boom, is pivotallymounted? on the fiamfa of the machine-adjacent the disclriargeTsnoutoif the mixer so that it can beswungglaterallytb bring; its outer part andl'thebucliefi thereon tbf' different points from side tb'sid of? the 1:02; grade being, paved; and theb'ucket" is provitled'i withlmeans for propelling it along, the; 1600mm both. directions and for 't'rippin'g it's bottomldbmi' at any desiredpoint" alongitheiboom fofdgosifi ing its load of mixed concrete at?tliatixioiht;

The tendency in recent'ti'mes is, toilincreas'eltha capacity of the mixing drum, so that; large; batches oficoncretecan' b'emixedi tlier eihia'ndi discharged" therefrom and" thework thus. eilgee dit'ed. Efficient and economical operatiofi"oftfiej mixer also requires that'tliei fuIIWi'atbH; of the? drum shall'be discharged.therefromlin manner:- a'tion, sothat' it can be immediatelyrecliargefil and the mixing: carried on wliilev the concrete; 15; being distributed; The use'of -such l-argecapa'city; mixing. drums makesthe problem oFdiStribut'ibn of the concrete on T the roadway all tii'emo'rejii'n portan't', notwithstanding the" raw that. the bucket may be discharged at'lariy' desired point:- within therangeiofthe boom.

The fact that'the buckets can be'diimpedat. any point along theboom aifords'on'lyfa partial? solution with'respect to distribution of" thelconicrete on' the roadway: nd the. formation, of the concrete into a pavement; A. bucket" which; dumps its entirecontents at one'point requii'es. that the greater part of thisloadofconcrete be spread and. distributed by hand" or that"on1yqai part of. thebatch of concrete"mixed'iland readii" for distribution be discharged" into thebuckefi and" distributed, which greatly' reduces the 11012 2? losst-to the,.contractbr: we overcome tiiis' obfec tion: dbubi buckets liavebeen"employed;

In the dual buckettype of apparatus;' buckets are arranged"? m be? operated independently in. association with two boom sections se cured tbgetii'er arrd operating" as" a" singl'e boomi. The buckets are loaded by beingpresented to getfierat the discharge" spoutioff the' miter; and the batch of concrete divided evenly between tiiemms it ccmes'fromtfiedischargespoutf One, 01: tli'e** bucifewmayrbes drawn out orr the: baom and discharge, o1 botii buckets may" be. charged? at; the same time; and aif'tiie' same-i oi di'fl'erentipoiiitsfaiongafiabocmr when-tfierbuciietsdntiierdiial type'ofapgaratiise are movedito; tiie diimpiiig' pointi anifdisciiaigetdi separatelymie tiocmtmaybezswmtglaterally-after one: BucEet; is disciiaiged ami- .befiire 'ti'iefotfiefis moved tn" a' discharging; point"; so" that "thetiatcfi: be" deposited on: the grade at. two" points? spaced? froi r" eacii otlierriongitudinanr or" level any; orifFbbtfidfrections; and a'gart offtne man;- ual. work for spreading and placingftiie 'liatcfitiius disnerrseai with: While; tne dfiali ty e of" appa, ratusmgerateszefiicientlys was afsfdi'iiisiim oftlie? aiidj mixing? pfroductibfi of the: drum? are: concerned? this" tyne; well i as" other types? of mike'rs stii requires: that: the concrete bespreadf over a considerafiiearea'j which. involves a great? deal-of manna? laboriii spreadinggam piacingtit properly mrtfieegradez' ficcoruingiyg an obi ecforitfie presenfiinvention; is? we? moyi'd an? apparatus?" embcdyifig? novei means-ft? expeditiously? spreading." concrete: d gositedi'upoir asupporting "surface? Ahotiiembict;isxiy providejaconcretetspreader for" distflduningfconcrete deposited" upona ro'a'd wag; iii which a: nme'l concrete? spreading," unit? i einnlbyediand in whicli'novel means areiifncmz porated i rii'oying tiieispreadiii-g; unit. in: a'iicrii-f zcntalbatlibver'theToadwayi A further. objectislto pnovi'de alconcitete spreader amaratus' adapted: to; move? along, ffirm membeis 's'ucliiasardemployediifipavementfconsfilic; tiimworki: w be guided thereby com tb: titeditecticm' of grogressiori-oftlielwork and vertically withl'nesg'ecfltotiiewoadway surface in which noverlrotaryfspreading means are provided {of distributing oncretedegcsite'd upon'j-t ,roadway; iietweemtiievibrm members; and. in wiiicliiriovtel riieans* are: grovfded'j for. propelling tlrfe: rotary snreadirig means bacieandiiortii arcrosstlieroad way amt siinuitaneousiy=- rotating: the? spreading mal. output'ofthe' machine and'resu'lti iii'iseribusz 5 tfieseeaudiotiiercbjcetsnni asr mam appear from the accompanying specifications, the invention consists. of various features of construction and combination of parts, which will be first described in connection with the accompanying drawings, showing a concrete spreader of a preferred form embodying the invention, and the features. forming-the inventionwill cifically pointed out in the claims. In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a concrete spreader in accordance with the present invention, with a portion broken away for the sakeof T conciseness.

Figure 2 is a front elevatienalview 'ofthe ture of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an end elevational viewof theconcrete spreader, a portion thereofbeing removed for the sake of illustration.

be spe- I21 The track 33 comprises two parallel but spaced I-beams 48 which are mounted on the ,frame members I 3. The traveler 38 comprises afyoke 4| which underlies the I-beams 40 and which is providedwith two upstanding walls 42,

Figure 4 is a view taken from the position in dicated byline 4-4 of Figure 3. v

Figure 5 is a view taken along the Figure 3..

Figure .6 is a partial sectional viewof a concrete spreadingjunit adjusting device. v

Figure 'Iis a sectional view taken along the line 1-1 of Figure 6. a I

1 Figure 8 is a view taken from the position'ind-i cated byline. 88 of Figure 2 I 'eferring more. particularly to the drawings.

Figures 1, 2, and .3 illustrate a. carriage or. support lfllwhich is provided with flanged traction wheels I I arranged to run on spaced parallel form" members I2 such as are usedfin concrete pavement. construction work for defining the side limitsof the-pavement. The carriage Ill comprises in 'parttwo hollow frame members |3,each of" which-'defines one side of. the carriage. Each member I 3 is mounted upon two legs l4, and each leg is supported by one offthe traction wheelsl'l.

The wheels II are attached to shafts or axles,

' which are supported in bearings ;.|6.mounted'on the respective legs. 7

Means for driving the tractio'n .wheelsT clude a horizontal shaft I] which extends the full.

width of the carriage l0 direotlyabove the axles- |5 of the two rear wheels H. The .shaft is supported in bearings l8 attached to thetwo frame members I 3, and the shaft is provided with sprockets l9 for driving chains .28 passingjaround sprockets 2| attached tothetworeai faxlesQI5. Torthe shaft [1 and-Within the two frame mam:

. bers I3Iare attached two sprockets 22'forldriving.

chains 23 each extendinghorizontally inside'one 0f the frame members toward "the forward end of the, carriage. .Each chain 23 passes'faround'a sprocket 24 attached to. a shaft 25, the latterberingsupported in bearings 26 mounted inside the respective frame member l3. A. spro'cket'21is }l" ;%1ched to each shaft 25 for drivinga chain '28 which passes around a sprocket '29. attached to one ofthefront axles l5. f f

i The sprockets 2| and 29. are -of..the same diam-.

. blade body'of increasing thickness from the hub eter, and the sprockets 9, 22, 24, and 21 are also of the same diameter so that all the traction wheels IL'will be driven at the same 'speed.. .Power for driving the shaft .I'I issupplied byjan'engine or motor 30 which is mounted. on the carriage "1.1 A speed reducer 3|, of any ap vea typais -con-. nected with the engine 38 as at 32,:and is provid-- edi with power take-off sprockets 33 and 34. .A

. c'oncreteenga'ged by the blades 5!. To that end, V

chain 35 passes around the Sprocket33and a second sprocket 36 attached to thesha'ft| .fo r

driving the latter. Speed reducers'ofthe foregoing .type, including controls for controlling the' transmission of power through the two sprockets each of which is provided with two flanged wheels 43 arranged to run on the bottom flange 44 of o ne:of the I-beams 40, with the two I-beams located between the two sets of wheels.

,Back and forth movement is impartedto the traveler 38 by an endless chain-45 which passes around a drive sprocket 46 and an idler sprocket 41 rotatably. mounted on one of the I-beams 40, with thesprockets so. arranged asto place the straight reaches of the chain (disregarding slack) in parallalism with the flange 44 of the I-beam.

An arm 48 is fixed to the yoke 4| and has a pivotal connection 49 with an arm 58 attached to one link of the chain 45; The arm 58 extends inwardly of the chain, andthe pivotal connection 49 is. located with its axis coincident. with a straight line passing through the axes of the drive sprocket 46 and the idler sprocket 41.

.It will thus be seen that as the arm 50 is care riedi by the lower reach of the chain 45, the traveler 38 will be moved in the same direction and that when the arm is carried by the upper reach of the chain, the traveler will be moved in a reverse direction; also that the traveler 38 remains stationary while the arm 50 moves through the curved phases of the chain 45 in itsflpassage around the two sprockets 46 and 41. Accordingly,. 1nidirectiona1 movement of the chain 45 is translated into'back and forth movement of the traveler 38, which moves. the spreader .31 back and forth in a horizontal path across the roadway or other surface being paved.

The spreader 31 comprises a plurality of identical blades 5| which are fixed to a hub; 52, the

latter being attached'to a vertical shaft 53. which is carried by the traveler 38.... The blades 5| radiate fr'om'the axis of the shaft 53 and are equally spaced one from the other circumferentially of the shaft. According to Figure 8, each blade is provided with two. vertical side faces 54 which terminate ina vertical outer. edge 55, and the faces 54are of such angular relationship with respect to each other, and curvature as to define a 54 throughout substantially half the radial length or, the blade, with the thickness decreasing from that point outwardly to the vertical edge 55.

. In addition to the back and forth movement of. the. S reader 31 in a horizontal path, the

spreader is caused to rotate about the axis of the shaft 53 throughout the horizontal travel of the spreader in either direction, which provides a blade action .f which effectively distributes the thef'shaft 53 is rotatably supported'in a tubular bearing 56 which is attached to the yoke 4i; Up-

ontheshaft 53is mounted a gear 57 which has a key 58. slidably confined in a longitudinal groove the-jshaft to impart rotation to the shaft. .when the gear is rotated,but with-the shaft free to shift axially of the gear to permit adjustment of the spreader 31 in a vertical direction.

Since the gear 5'! is mounted on the shaft 53, this gear travels back and forth with the traveler 38, and the gear meshes with a rack 60 fixed to the I-beam All opposite the chain 45, so that the gear 5'! is caused to roll along the rack through back and forth movement of the traveler 38. When viewing Figure 1, movement of the traveler 38 from right to left causes counterclockwise rotation of the shaft 53 and its attached spreador 31, while movement of the traveler from left to right causes clockwise rotation of the shaft and the traveler.

In view of the fact that the carriage l maybe moved along the form members I2 and that the traveler 38 travels back and forth along the track 39 which is arranged at right angles to the form members 12-, the spreader 31 is capable of universal movement or positioning in a horizontal plane. Such positional adaptability of the spreader 31 together with its power driven spreading blades, provides an apparatus which effectively distributes concrete deposited in large or small batches upon the roadway or other supporting surface.

The sprocket 56, which drives the chain 45, is fixed to a rotary shaft fil'which is provided with a second sprocket 82. A chain 63 connects the sprocket 62 with the power take-off sprocket 34.

In Figure 6, the shaft 53 extends some distance above the gear 5? and is threaded at 64 for threaded connection with a hub or nut 65 of a handwheel (56. The hub 65 rests on the gear 51, with the gear resting on the upper end of the tubular bearin 55. It will thus be seen that the shaft 53 may be adjusted vertically through rotation of the handwheel 63-. A shoulder 61 is provided on the shaft 53 for engagement with the gear 51' to prevent the rotary blades 51 from being lowered beyond their maximum depth.

Between the rear wheels I l and the spreader 31 is mounted a strike-01f blade 68 which extends at right angles to the frame members l3 and is employed for contouring the finished surface of the pavement after general distribution of the concrete by the spreader 31. The strike-off blade 68 is made in sections, 69 which are arranged end to end and flatwise against a supporting angle Slots H are provided in the sections 69 for the reception of bolts i2 which are threaded into or through the angle it. Thus the individual sections 65 may be adjusted vertically to modify the contour forming characteristics of the strikeoff blade.

The angle H3 is attached to the lower flange of an I-beam l3, and angles 14 are attached to the I-beam for engagement with the two rear legs i l to guide the I-beam when it is raised and lowcred, asv when the strike-off blade is adjusted vertically in accordance with specific road building requirements, or for moving purposes. Means for raising and lowering the I-beam 13 comprise plunger rods i5 which are attached to the I-beam and operated by hydraulic cylinders 16' mounted on the two frame members [3. Carriage supported strike-off blades and hydraulic cylinder controlling means therefor are old and well known in the art and need not be described in more detail.

It will be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the specific construction or arrangement of parts shown, but that they may be widely modified within the invention defined by the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A concrete spreader for distributing concrete deposited upon a supporting surface comprising a support, a horizontal track carried by said support, a carriage movable along said track, a bladed concrete spreading unit mounted on said carriage for rotation about a vertical axis, means for propelling said carriage back and forth along said track to move said spreading unit in a horizontal path over the supporting surface, and means for rotating said spreading unit, said bladed concrete spreading unit having blades each provided with curved concrete spreading faces.

2. A concrete spreader for distributing concrete deposited upon a supporting surface comprising a support, a horizontal track carried by said support, a carriage movable along said track, a bladed concrete spreading unit mounted on said carriage for rotation about a vertical axis, means for propelling said carriage back and forth along said track to move" said spreading unit in a horizontal path over the supporting surface, and means for rotating said spreading unit in one direction during movement of said carriage in one direction along the track and in the reverse direction upon reverse movement of the carriage along the track, said bladed concrete spreading unit having blades each provided with curved concrete spreading faces.

3. A concrete spreader for distributing concrete deposited upon a supporting surface comprising a support, a horizontal track carried by said support, a carriage movable along said track, a concrete spreading unit mounted for rotation on said carriage, means for propelling said carriage back and forth along said track to move said spreading unit in a horizontal path over the supporting surface, a rack extending along said track, and a gear operatively connected with said spreading unit and meshing with said rack for' imparting rotary motion to the spreading unit through movement of saidcarriage along said track; said concrete spreading unit having vertically positioned blades each provided with concrete spreading faces reversely curved with respect to each other.

4. A concrete spreader for distributing concrete deposited upon a supporting surface comprising a support, a horizontal track carried by said support, a carriage movable along said track, a concrete spreading unit mounted on said carriage for rotation about a vertical axis, means for propelling said carriage back and forth along said track. tomove said spreading unit in a horizontal path over the supporting surface, a rack fixed to and extending along said track, a gear operatively connected with said spreading unit and meshing with said rack for imparting rotary motion to the spreading unit throughmovement of said carriage along said track, and means for adjusting said spreading unit vertically, said concrete spreading unit having vertically positioned blades each provided with concrete spreading faces reversely curved respect to each other.

5'. In a concrete spreader for distributing concrete on a surface to be concreted, a carriage adaptedto be supported on and moved along saidchain andsaid traveler, said operating connection having a pivotal connection with said traveler at a point coincident with a straight line passing through the axes of said drive sprocket and'the idler sprocket for propellingthe traveler and said spreading ,unit back and forth along said guide means through unidirectional movement of said chain, a rack fixedly related to said guide means, a gear operatively connected with said spreading unit and meshing with said rack for rotating the spreading unit through movement of the traveler'along said guide means, and means for adjusting said spreading unit vertically. v

6. In a concrete spreader for distributing concrete on a surface to be concreted, a carriage adapted to be supported on and moved along spaced parallel form members, horizontal guide means carried by said carriage crosswise of the form members, a traveler movable along said guide means, a bladed concrete spreading unit mounted on said traveler for rotation about a vertical axis, an endless chain, a drive sprocket and an idler sprocket for driving the chain and supporting the latter in parallelismrwith said guide means, an operating connection between said chain and said traveler, said operating connection having a pivotal connection with said traveler at a point coincident with a straight line passing through the axes of said drive sprocket and the idler sprocket for propelling the traveler and said spreading unit back and forth along said guide means through unidirectional movement of said chain, a rack fixedly related to said guide means, a gear operatively connected with said spreading unit and meshing with said rack for rotating the spreading unit through movement of the traveler along said guide means, means for adjusting said spreading unit vertically, a power means drivingly connected with said drive sprocket, traction wheels on said car riage engaging the form members, and a driving connection between said traction Wheels and with said rack to impart rotation-to theconcrete spreading -means when said traveler is moved alongsaid guide, a hand-wheel having a hub ,threadedly connected'vvith said shaft, said gearbeing located between said bearing and said hub, said hub resting onsaid gear to support the weight of said concrete spreading means and for adjusting the latter for height through rotation of the hand wheel, and means for propelling said travelerback and forth along said guide.

' 9. A concrete spreader'for distributing concrete deposited upon' a surface including a mail)- able supporting carriage, a traveler meansfor moving said traveler transversely of the direction of movement of the carriage, concrete spreading means carried by said traveler, said spreading means comprising a plurality of radiating blades having convex concrete engaging surfaces, and mcans for rotating said spreading means about a vertical axis during movementof the traveler across said carriage. 1

10. In a concrete spreader for distributingcom crete deposited upon a surface the combination with a movable supporting carriage, a traveler carried by said carriage means for moving said traveler transversely of the direction of movement of the carriage, concrete spreading means carried by said traveler, said spreading means comprisinga plurality of radiating blades having convexconcrete engaging-Z. surfaces, means eme bodying a gear for rotating said spreader about a vertical axis during Imovement of the traveler across the carriage and means co-operating with said gear for adjusting said spreading means vertically relative'to said traveler. a

11. A concrete spreader for distributing con-- crete deposited upon a'surface including-a movable supporting carriage, a track extending transversely-across said carriage, a traveler movable along said track, means for moving said traveler along said "track, concrete spreading said power means for moving the carriage along a bladed concrete spreading member having a vertical shaft rotatably mounted on said traveler, a rack extending along said track and fixedly related thereto, a gear mounted on said shaft and meshing with said rack, said shaft being keyed to said gear for rotation therewith but movable axially relatively to the gear, means for restraining the gear from shifting laterally of the rack, means for adjusting the shaft axially to shift said concrete spreading member relativelyt'o the supporting surface and means for movingsaid traveler back and forth along said track to impart corresponding movement to the concrete spreading member and to cause said gear-to roll along said rack for rotating said concrete spreading member. s v

8. A concrete pavement building apparatus comprising a carriage, a rotative concrete spreading means for distributing concrete deposited upon a roadway, a guide extending crosswise of the roadway and mounted on said carriage, a traveler movable along said guide, said concrete spreading means including an upright shaft and a'bearing onsaid traveler for rotatively supportable supporting carriage, a track extending transversely across said carriage, a traveler movable-along said.track,'means for moving said traveler along said track, concrete spreading means carried by saidtraveler and including a plurality of radiating; convex concreteengaging surface, a vertical shaft connected to said spreading means, a gear feathered to said shaft for rotation with the shaft and to permit longitudinal movement of the shaft relative to the gear, and means carried bysaid track for engagement with said gear to rotate said spreading means as said traveler moves along said track.

13.-.A concrete Spreader for distributing" concrete deposited upon a surface including a movable supporting carriage, a track extending transversely across said carriage, a traveler movable alongsaid track, means for moving said traveler along said track, concrete spreading meanscarried by said traveler and including a plurality of radiating convex concrete engaging surfaces, a vertical shaft connected to said spreading means, a gear feathered to said'shaft for rotation with theshaft and to permit longiing the shaft, a rack fixedly related to said carto move said spreading means vertically, and

means carried by said track for engagement with said gear to rotate said spreading means as said traveler moves along said track.

14. In apparatus for spreading concrete deposited upon a road bed, a main frame traversable longitudinally along said bed, said frame having a transverse trackway; a wheeled carriage mounted on said trackway; power operated means for reciprocating said carriage upon the trackway; a spreading blade mounted by the carriage for movement relative thereto about a vertical axis; and mechanism for so moving the blade throughout traverse of the carriage on the trackway.

15. In apparatus for spreading concrete deposited upon a road bed, a main frame traversable longitudinally along said bed, said frame having a traverse trackway, a wheeled carriage mounted on said trackway, power operated means for reciprocating said carriage upon the trackway; a spreading blade mounted on the carriage for movement relative thereto about a vertical axis, mechanism for so moving the blade throughout traverse of the carriage on the trackway, and mechanism for adjusting said spreading blade vertically without affecting movement of the blade about its vertical axis.

16. In apparatus for spreading concrete deposited upon a road bed, a main frame traversable longitudinally along said bed, said frame having a traverse trackway, a wheeled carriage mounted on said trackway, power operated means for reciprocating said carriage upon the trackway, a spreading blade mounted by the carriage for movement relative thereto about a vertical axis, a vertical shaft connected to said spreading blade, a gear feathered to said shaft to permit longitudinal movement of the shaft relative to the gear, means connected to said gear for moving the spreading blade on a vertical axis and relative to the carriage throughout traverse of the carriage on the trackway, and mechanism connected to the shaft for moving the shaft and spreading blade vertically relative to said gear.

17. In apparatus for spreading concrete deposited upon a road bed, a main frame traversable longitudinally along said bed, said frame having a traverse trackway, a wheeled carriage mounted on said trackway, power operated means for reciprocating said carriage upon the trackway, a spreading blade mounted by the carriage for movement relative thereto about a vertical axis, mechanism for so moving the blade throughout traverse of the carriage on the trackway, said spreading blade comprising a plurality of individual blades radiating from a common center.

18. In apparatus for spreading concrete deposited upon a road bed, a main frame traversable longitudinally along said bed, said frame having a traverse trackway, a wheeled carriage mounted on said trackway, power operated means for reciprocating the carriage upon the trackway, a spreading blade mounted by the carriage for movement relative thereto about a vertical axis, mechanism for so moving the blade throughout traverse of the carriage on the trackway, said spreading blade comprising a plurality of individual blades radiating from a common center, each of said individual blades having opposed curved surfaces for contact with concrete to be spread.

19. In apparatus for spreading concrete deposited upon a road bed, a main frame traversable longitudinally along said bed, said frame having a traverse trackway, a wheeled carriage mounted on said trackway, power operated means for reciprocating the carriage upon the trackway, a spreading blade mounted by the carriage for movement relative thereto about a vertical axis, mechanism for s0 moving the blade throughout traverse of the carriage on the trackway, and mechanism for adjusting said spreading blade vertically without aifecting movement of the blade about its vertical axis, said spreading blade comprising a plurality of individual blade radiating from a common center.

20. In apparatus for spreading concrete deposited upon a road bed, a main frame traversable longitudinally along said bed, said frame having atraverse trackway, a wheeled carriage mounted on said trackway, power operated means for reciprocating the carriage upon the trackway, a spreading blade mounted by the carriage for movement relative thereto about a vertical axis, a vertical shaft connected to said spreading blade, a gear feathered to said shaft to permit longitudinal movement of the shaft relative to the gear, means connected to said gear for moving the spreading blade on a vertical axis throughout the traverse of the carriage on the trackway, said shaft having a portion of its length threaded, a nut on said threaded portion for moving the shaft and spreader blade vertically relative to said gear.

JOHN P. FABER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 325,744 Hicks Sept. 8, 1885 1,533,464 Robb Apr. 14, 1925 1,570,171 OBrien Jan. 19, 1926 1,579,443 Greene Apr. 6, 1926 2,334,717 Long Nov. 23, 1943 2,361,377 Bushnell Oct. 31, 1944 

